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The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Career » Page 15

Career

What Do You Do For a Living?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon April 11, 2013
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New Glasses

We have a new eye doctor and this past weekend I had my first appointment with him for my annual checkup.

He noted that I’m a literary agent. For one, I was impressed that he understood what a literary agent is. Most people have to ask. The conversation led to thoughts about professions as they are portrayed in books and on TV. Let me recap his thoughts:

“There are very few opthamologists in movies.” He named a couple of films, one with an eye doctor as a minor character.

“It’s hard for a character to have a 9-5 job because they work all day. People in movies seem to be architects. For one, no one knows what hours they work, so they can be available any time. Two, you can show them carrying around a set of blueprints as a visual. And three, they have a cool prop like a drawing board.”

From that perspective, he’s right. Visuals for the career of an architect can be rather effective and easy. And though regular office hours may be the reality for most architects, few people know one way or the other, so the perception is that they work when they please. Just look at any “Brady Bunch” TV show. Did the dad ever put in a full day of work?

I always laugh at older films showing a writer driving to an agent or editor’s house to deliver a hard copy of a manuscript in a manila envelope. That has never happened in my experience. I wonder how many people think that was actually how publishing professionals worked on a routine basis?

And how many characters do we see living well beyond the salaries they would be paid in real life?

The fact is, books and film can portray idealized working hours for rarified professions, partly for glamour, and to keep the plot from becoming encumbered. And as readers and viewers, we are more than happy to play along.

Your turn:

What professions do you like to assign your characters? Why?

What professions do you think are over-represented in books or TV? Under-represented?

What professions would you like to see more of?

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Category: Book Business, Career, Craft, TamelaTag: Career

Gotta Love Numbers

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon April 4, 2013
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I didn't attend kindergarten so my initial encounter with numbers happened in first grade. One day, we were working on math problems. As we finished, the teacher let each of us choose a stick of modeling clay. The colors were red, green, brown, and gray. I really, really wanted red. Green would have been OK, but definitely not brown and certainly not gray. I urgently scratched numbers on the ruled …

Read moreGotta Love Numbers
Category: Book Business, Career, TamelaTag: Book Business, Career

Focus (Part Three)

By Karen Ballon April 3, 2013
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I've always enjoyed photography. But it wasn't until I came to understand the power of focus that I loved taking pictures. Focus helps you tell the story that you see in the picture. Whether your focus is on what’s close to the camera:

Or what’s in the background:

Or on the minute, microscopic details:

Each aspect gives us a different story in the same picture.

Our careers in …

Read moreFocus (Part Three)
Category: Book Business, Career, Craft, Creativity, Karen, Marketing, Writing CraftTag: Career, Focus

Refine Your Focus

By Karen Ballon March 20, 2013
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Let’s talk about Focus.

I like Webster’s definitions:

Focus (noun)
a : adjustment (as of the eye or an eyepiece) for distinct vision
b : the position in which something must be placed (as in relation to a camera lens) for clearness of image or clarity of mental perception
: a central point: as
a : a center of activity or attraction or one drawing the greatest attention and …

Read moreRefine Your Focus
Category: Book Business, Career, Craft, Creativity, Karen, Writing CraftTag: Career, Focus, Writing Craft

Down in the Valley

By Karen Ballon February 20, 2013
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Imagine awakening one morning, not knowing where you are, utterly unable to move or speak. Imagine coming to the slow realization that you are in a hospital, and that the people all around you are looking at you and talking to you, but you can do nothing in response. Imagine doctors telling that, at the age of 43, you’ve suffered a stroke that has caused what they call “locked-in” syndrome, where …

Read moreDown in the Valley
Category: Book Business, Career, Craft, KarenTag: Career, Discouragement, perseverance

Reactions to Your Career

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon November 29, 2012
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Often, strangers ask me what a literary agent does. Once I tell them, they'll want to share with me that they are writing a children's picture book. Or an aunt, cousin, or friend, is writing one. I think a lot of parents write read-aloud books because they are part of the bedtime ritual with their own children and perceive that the volume of books published means the market is vast. Unfortunately, …

Read moreReactions to Your Career
Category: Agency, Book Business, Career, TamelaTag: Career

The Elephant’s Goin’ Down!

By Karen Ballon September 19, 2012
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by Karen Ball

You remember the old adage:
Q: How do you eat an elephant?
A: One bite at a time!
As I’ve reviewed my calendar this week, I’ve realized that’s what I’ve got on the screen in front of me. An elephant.

Maybe two.

And they’re reaaaaallly big.

SO many things to get done before I board a plane early Wednesday morning and wing my way to Dallas for the ACFW conference. As …

Read moreThe Elephant’s Goin’ Down!
Category: Book Business, Career, Writing CraftTag: Career, Time Management

Rejuvenate!

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon September 6, 2012
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By Tamela Hancock Murray

Of late, several popular Christian and secular bloggers have posted about unplugging for a time. I have enjoyed reading their ideas because I realize the importance of rebooting every once in awhile.

Years ago I read an article that said if being laid up with a broken ankle for six weeks sounded good to you, then you are too stressed out. At that moment, I knew I …

Read moreRejuvenate!
Category: Book Business, Career, Creativity, Personal, TamelaTag: Career, Rejuvenate

Are We Speaking the Same Language?

By Steve Laubeon March 21, 2012
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by Karen Ball

I love languages. I started studying French in the 7th grade (“Bonjour, Monsieur DuPree. Comment-allez vous?), and by the time I had my double college degree in multiple-languages and journalism, I’d studied French (12 years), Spanish (5 years), and Russian (1 year). But I confess, I never expected to have to learn a new language when I entered the publishing …

Read moreAre We Speaking the Same Language?
Category: Book Business, Career, Communication, KarenTag: Career, Communication, Editing, Language

Don’t Quit Your Day Job

By Steve Laubeon October 27, 2011
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I’ve been talking with writers who have another job as well as their writing to see how they juggle doing both. I was a social worker before my daughter was born and started writing soon after, but now that my youngest is off to college I’ve thought about getting back into the work force. I just don’t know how I’d balance the two yet.

The first thing I thought of was that I’d have to do some …

Read moreDon’t Quit Your Day Job
Category: Book Business, Career, Get Published, Writing CraftTag: Book Business, Career, Writing Craft
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